comb

[ kohm ]

/ koʊm /

noun

a toothed strip of plastic, hard rubber, bone, wood, or metal, used for arranging the hair, untangling it, or holding it in place.

a currycomb.

any comblike instrument, object, or formation.

the fleshy, more or less serrated outgrowth on the head of certain gallinaceous birds, especially the domestic fowl.

something resembling or suggesting this, as the crest of a wave.

a honeycomb, or any similar group of cells.

a machine for separating choice cotton or wool fibers from noil.

a comblike instrument for imparting a grainlike finish to a painted surface.

Chiefly Midland and Southern U.S. a ridge of a roof.

a series of springlike prongs projecting from a spine, usually of plastic, for making a loose-leaf binding.

a trowel having a notched edge for applying adhesives in setting tiles or the like.

Armor. a ridge along the top of a helmet, especially of the morion.

Masonry. drag (def. 31).

the upper edge of the buttstock of a rifle or shotgun.

verb (used with object)

to arrange or adorn (the hair) with a comb.

to use (something) in the manner of a comb: She was slowly combing her fingers through her hair.

to remove (anything undesirable) with or as if with a comb: She combed the snarls out of her hair. They combed the cowards from the group.

to search everywhere in: He combed the files for the missing letter.

to separate (textile fibers) with a comb.

to scrape with or as with a comb.

to sweep across; rake: High winds combed the seacoast.

verb (used without object)

to roll over or break at the crest, as a wave.

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Origin of comb

First recorded before 900; Middle English; Old English comb, camb; cognate with Old High German kamb (German Kamm ), Old Norse kambr, Greek gómphos “pin, peg,” gomphíos “molar tooth,” Slavic (Polish) ząb “tooth,” Tocharian A kam “tooth”; see cam¹, kempt

OTHER WORDS FROM comb

comb·less, adjectivecomb·less·ness, nounun·combed, adjectivewell-combed, adjective

Definition for comb (2 of 2)

comb.

combination.

combined.

combining.

combustion.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021

Example sentences from the Web for comb

But do you think the same amount of media resources would have been dedicated to combing through Lerner's emails as Palins?
The IRS Email Double Standard|Matt Lewis|November 25, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Cops went searching for a would-be suicide bomber, combing through the north-central part of the city.
As Gaza War Comes Home to Israel, a Reluctant Suicide Bomber Emerges|Itay Hod|August 4, 2014|DAILY BEAST
He says investigators are combing through all the homicides over the last decade to find other similarities.
Italy’s Scariest Serial Killer Returns|Barbie Latza Nadeau|May 7, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The police searched all the rooms looking for any Stavitsky documents and combing through financial records.
The Mafia Ruling Ukraine’s Mobs|Jamie Dettmer|March 23, 2014|DAILY BEAST

Right now 29 airplanes and 18 ships are involved in combing the area where on Sunday the satellite found the debris.
Was MH370 Carrying Killer Cargo?|Clive Irving|March 21, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The man approached, dripping and breathing heavily, and placed his hands on the combing.
Tom Slade at Temple Camp|Percy K. Fitzhugh
The cooks and stewards, their hands on the combing, filled the fore-hatch.
Continental Monthly, Vol. I, No. V, May, 1862|Various
She was then wetting her head with the water in the basin, and combing her hair with a golden comb.
Myths and Folk Tales of Ireland|Jeremiah Curtin
Wilkins is combing the East Side and I hope to have news in a few hours.
The Mystery of the Hidden Room|Marion Harvey
How pleasant it must be to have Mrs. Crabtree combing and scolding, and scolding and combing, for hours every day!
Holiday House|Catherine Sinclair

British Dictionary definitions for comb

comb

/ (kəʊm) /

noun

a toothed device of metal, plastic, wood, etc, used for disentangling or arranging hair

a tool or machine that separates, cleans, and straightens wool, cotton, etc

Australian and NZ the fixed cutter on a sheep-shearing machine

anything resembling a toothed comb in form or function

the fleshy deeply serrated outgrowth on the top of the heads of certain birds, esp the domestic fowl

anything resembling the comb of a bird

a currycomb

a honeycomb

the row of fused cilia in a ctenophore

go over with a fine-tooth comb, go over with a fine-toothed comb, go through with a fine-tooth comb or go through with a fine-toothed comb to examine very thoroughly

verb

(tr) to use a comb on

(when tr, often foll by through) to search or inspect with great carethe police combed the woods

Word Origin for comb

Old English camb; related to Old Norse kambr, Old High German camb

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Idioms and Phrases with comb

comb

see fine-tooth comb.

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comb

noun

verb (used with object)

verb (used without object)

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Origin of comb

OTHER WORDS FROM comb

Definition for comb (2 of 2)

Example sentences from the Web for comb

British Dictionary definitions for comb

noun

verb

Word Origin for comb

Idioms and Phrases with comb

MEANINGS

WORD GAMES

LEARN

WRITING

WORD OF THE DAY

comb

noun

verb (used with object)

verb (used without object)

QUIZZES

LEARN THE SPANISH WORDS FOR THESE COMMON ANIMALS!

Origin of comb

OTHER WORDS FROM comb

Definition for comb (2 of 2)

Words related to comb

Example sentences from the Web for comb

British Dictionary definitions for comb

noun

verb

Word Origin for comb

Idioms and Phrases with comb